


The Cashier

by Deannachu



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Fluff, M/M, pure fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-28
Updated: 2014-09-28
Packaged: 2018-02-19 01:43:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,414
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2369813
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Deannachu/pseuds/Deannachu
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Michael works at a grocery store, and one night Gavin comes in to make a late night purchase. It doesn't take much for the two to instantly connect, and Michael thinks that maybe working at a grocery store isn't so bad of a job after all.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Cashier

**Author's Note:**

> So this took a much different turn than I thought it would, and it's also a lot longer than I thought, but I hope you enjoy!

"Gavin, sweetheart?" His mom had shuffled into the living room where Gavin was sitting comfortably, watching a movie on TV. Her belly protruded from her night gown and she waddled slightly as she walked. 

"Yes mum?" he asked, muting the television and giving her his full attention. It was after ten on a Friday night, so it was normal for Gavin to be awake right now; ever since his mother had reached her third trimester, she had been going to bed earlier and waking up more often with cravings. 

"Honey, would you mind running to the store and getting some Oreos for me? Your baby sister has just informed me that she wants something chocolatey," she laughed sleepily, plopping down in her favorite chair and covering herself with the quilt that was draped across the arm. "What are you watching?"

"Oh, it's just some horror movie," Gavin replied, handing her the remote. "You can change it; it's not exactly scary, more cheesy than anything. Do you need anything else while I'm there?" She shook her head and reached out a hand to caress his face.

"Thank you, dear," she said fondly. He smiled at her and kissed her cheek.

"Be back in a few!" he called before grabbing his phone, wallet, and house keys and heading out the door. The night air was cool for a September in Austin and he wished he had grabbed a jacket; though the store was just a short walk away so he felt like he could manage heading there and back and not catch too bad of a chill. The streets were quiet, houses were dark, well except for a couple of houses near the corner that belonged to some renting college students, they were brightly lit and alive. Gavin smiled to himself, knowing that one of those houses belonged to his friend Miles and pulled out his phone, dialing the number.

"Hey, Gav!" chirped Miles from the other end loudly, having to yell over the noise in the background. "Hey, everyone, shut the hell up, I'm on the phone!"

"Why don't you just go outside?" hollered a faint voice that Gavin recognized as belonging to Barbara, and he laughed. "Who are you talking to?" Her voice got louder as she neared Miles.

"Gavin," he replied and there was some scuffling and swearing before Barbara's cheerful voice sounded over the other end, "Hey Gavin!"

"Hey Barb," he said, laughing. "You didn't hurt Miles too badly did you?"

"What, me? Hurt Miles? Nah," she scoffed, though he heard a loud thump and a "son of a bitch!" on the other end of the line, causing Gavin's eyebrow to raise in suspicion. "Okay maybe a little bit, but it's nothing that won't heal."

"You're scary sometimes."

"I try," she said sweetly. "Anyway, what's up? I thought you might be asleep by now, since you usually go to bed early."

"I was watching TV and mom had a craving," he explained as he neared the store. There were only a few cars left in the parking lot, even though they closed in less than an hour. He grimaced at the thought of being one of those very last minute customers and made a mental note to apologize to the cashier when he checked out. "So I had to run to the store and I passed by Miles's house and saw that all the lights were on."

"Yeah he's throwing a very last minute 'party,'" she said, and Gavin could hear her put quotations around the word 'party.' 

"Doesn't he have a ten page paper due Monday?" asked Gavin, amused. He moved from the sidewalk and walked closer to the front doors of the store. He could see the back of a curly-haired, red-headed man as he vacuumed the rug in the front area. 

"Yes, yes he does."

"He hasn't even started on it, has he?" laughed Gavin, feeling the  _woosh_ of the air conditioning as he stepped inside the store. The employee turned his head and shot Gavin a tired smile.

"How are you tonight?" he asked quietly, as though it took too much energy to greet him. 

"I'm fine, thanks, how are you?" he responded politely. He saw his eyes widen slightly at Gavin's accent, a normal response, and the smile he shot back was a little bit more energetic. 

"I'm tired," he admitted honestly, laughing. Gavin laughed with him stopped, looking at the aisles. 

"Hang on, Barb," he said to his phone before turning to the man. "Mate, would you mind telling me what aisles the Oreos are on?"

"Sure, aisle 5," the man pointed, and sure enough the sign in front of it said 'Cookies.' 

"Cheers." He held the phone back to his ear and he made his way towards the aisle. "Sorry about that, didn't want to be rude and be on the phone while I talked to that employee."

"Oh don't even get me started, I get asshole customers like that _all_ the fucking time," she said, annoyed. "And to answer your earlier question, no, Miles Luna has not started on his  _ten page paper due Monday,_ " she said loudly.

"I'll do it tomorrow!" yelled Miles in the background. 

"He's not going to do it tomorrow," Gavin snickered knowingly, browsing the different kinds of Oreos on the shelves. Regular, Double Stuff, Peanut Butter, Chocolate Creme... he grabbed a package of regular and chocolate creme off of the shelf and was about to head to the register when he decided to grab milk too, just in case. Goosebumps littered his arm as he reached into the cooler to grab a gallon. 

"You should come over once you get your mom her snack," Barb said cheerfully. "It's just me, Miles, Kdin, and Kerry right now. There's beer and stuff but you don't have to drink unless you want to." 

"Sure, that sounds like fun; I'll ask when I get home. Anyway, I'm about to check out so I'll talk to you when I get home, okay?" he said as he neared the register where the man stood, waiting for Gavin. 

"Absolutely; see ya Gav!" He put his phone in his pocket and shifted the items in his arms, placing them on the moving belt. The man - whose nametag read "Michael J" - began scanning his items in a pattern that seemed to suggest he had done this hundreds of times before. 

"Late night snack?" he asked, laughing at the junk food. Gavin grinned sheepishly. 

"Mum's in her third trimester and had a craving for chocolate," he explained. 

Michael nodded, understanding. "When my mom was pregnant with my brother, she craved all kinds of weird shit. The most disgusting thing of all, in my opinion, was when she was in her second trimester and made me go out and get sweet pickles and peanut butter." He shuddered and Gavin grimaced at the sound of the two foods together. "Yeah, she ate the  _entire_ jar of both that night, dipping the pickles in the peanut butter and then drinking the juice and finishing off the jar with a spoon." 

"That's-" Gavin gagged, coughing. "That's bloody awful."

"Yeah; I had to leave the room because I couldn't stand to watch her eat the stuff," he said, remembering the experience as though it happened just yesterday. 

"My mum never had any weird cravings; I mean, there was that one time that she craved nothing but olives for a while. I swear, we went through probably twenty large jars of olives in a two week span."

"Oh yeah?" he asked, listening intently. 

"Yeah," Gavin nodded, "and the funny thing was, she didn't even  _like_ olives." Michael laughed, partially tired and partially amused by his story, and glanced at his screen. 

"Oh, your total is $7.45 by the way." Michael looked down shyly at his hands, having been so caught up in conversation with the man that he had forgotten he was buying something. 

"Oh! Sorry, here," Gavin fumbled, pulling a few bills from his wallet. Michael cashed him out, handing back his change and receipt, along with his bags. 

"You're probably the last customer I'll have tonight," Michael said, scratching the back of his head. "I mean, unless you've got somewhere to be, I wouldn't mind the company..."

Gavin bit his lip, noticing how attractive Michael's features were; he had unruly red hair, glasses covering deep brown eyes, a few freckles, and a very charming smile. He wanted to stay until the store closed just so he could talk to him, get to know him more, but the milk would probably grow warm by that time and he really should go back to his mother, otherwise she'll be wondering what was taking him so long. "I honestly would, but I need to get this home to mum before she goes mental from her lack of chocolate," he said, noticing how the hopeful look on Michael's face dropped instantly. "But, I could come back another night, if you want."

Michael nodded eagerly. "I close tomorrow night, too; so I'll be here if you want to stop by and get a soda or something." He threw a shy smile Gavin's way and his heart sped up. 

"It's a deal." Gavin turned on his heel and headed for the door when Michael shouted, "So by any chance do I get to know your name?"

He stopped and and turned around, answering, "It's Gavin," before waving and walking outside into the night, walking quickly to get the cookies and milk to his mum. 

Michael looked after Gavin as he left and shook his head, grinning to himself. He began unplugging the vacuum and wrapping the cord up to put it away and laughed gently to himself. He never thought that working at a grocery store would allow him to meet someone he thought was attractive; he thought he would just have to deal with grumpy elderly couples and rude middle-aged men and women. He never never thought that he would meet someone like Gavin, who was polite and funny and, well, very attractive. 

Geoff, his boss, came out of one of the aisles just then and wiggled his eyebrows at Michael. "So who was that?" he teased, crossing his arms. Michael rolled his eyes and wheeled the vacuum behind the customer service counter, wiping off his hands as he returned to his register. 

"No one," he responded.  _Someone who made me hate my job just a little bit less._ _  
_

"Huh," Geoff said, a knowing look in his eyes. "If you say so. It's about ten minutes until closing, you done all your shit?"

"Geoff, I've closed a million times; yes, I've done 'all my shit,'" he grumbled, though it was less annoyed than how it usually sounded, mostly because of the British man who left mere moments ago. 

"Alright, alright. By the way," Geoff began walking away, "Ryan is the manager tomorrow night and, well, I don't think he's going to let you get away so easily with this 'no one' bullshit." He winked in Michael's direction and laughed as he finished the last minute things before closing. 

Michael didn't care about being teased by his boss; he, in a way, had a date tomorrow night, and he absolutely couldn't wait.

\--

The next night, Gavin was in his room playing Xbox with Miles, who was cursing at him through the headset as he gave his GTA V character a wanted level. "Damn it, Gavin, I  _just_ got rid of my wanted level!"

"What can I say? I'm bad to the bone," he joked, singing a few of the lyrics playfully. 

"Stop, stop, my ears," Miles cringed, causing Gavin to scoff.

"Oh please, my voice is beautiful thank you."

"If you call what sounds like a dying cat 'beautiful,'" Miles muttered under his breath.

"What was that, mate?"

"Oh, nothing," he replied innocently. Gavin was about to reply when his alarm went off from his phone, signaling that it was 10:20pm. It took him roughly ten minutes to walk to the store and he wanted to give himself plenty of time to talk with Michael. 

"Hey, Miles, I have to run to the store really quickly; I'll talk to you when I get back, okay?"

"Yeah okay; bye Gav!" He turned off his Xbox and gathered his phone, keys, and wallet once more. He looked at his reflection in the mirror, sniffed his shirt to make sure he smelled alright, and then quietly left the house. His parents didn't care if he left at night as long as he kept his phone on him at all times; they trusted that he wouldn't get into any kind of trouble.

He walked somewhat quickly, pulling his favorite sweatshirt around his shoulders, as it was cooler that night than it had been previously. The only light in Miles's house came from his bedroom and Gavin rolled his eyes. He still had not started on his essay, which Gavin begged him to do instead of playing Xbox; Miles insisted, however, that he would do it on Sunday, and that they should just play tonight since he wouldn't be able to tomorrow. 

He walked up to the store, only noticing two cars in the lot; one was the same, an older looking SUV and the other was newer, a medium-sized truck. He walked through the doors and Michael's head whipped around at the sound, his eyes lighting up significantly when Gavin walked inside.

"You came!" he crowed happily, as though he had expected him not to show up. 

"Of course I did," Gavin replied, suddenly shy. He noticed that Michael's hair was slightly more in control today and he didn't seem to be as tired as he had the night before. Gavin told him so, which he chuckled at.

"Lots of Red Bull," he explained, pointing at the large silver and blue can tucked underneath his register. "I wanted to have energy so I could talk to you tonight." He leaned back against his register and his eyes met Gavin's, causing the butterflies in his stomach to quicken in pace. 

"Let me grab a drink real quick," Gavin said, moving quickly to the other end of the register and opening up the cooler, picking out a cold bottle of Mountain Dew and handing it to Michael to scan. He paid for the drink and unscrewed the cap, taking a hefty swig and feeling the rush of the fizz as it slid down his throat. "So, Michael, tell me more about yourself." 

Michael scratched his chin and shrugged. "Ask me anything, I'm an open book." Gavin tapped his bottle for a moment, trying to think of a question to ask. 

"How old are you?" he finally asked. 

"I'm twenty-one," he answered, much to Gavin's surprise.

"As am I." Michael's smile widened. "Do you go to college?" He nodded.

"Yeah, UofT; I'm a graphic design major."

"Computer science," Gavin told him, and at this point he was practically beaming. They were the same age and both had an interest in computers; what else did they have in common?

"I'm not from here, though; originally from New Jersey. Moved here when I was fifteen and I've loved it ever since." He looked at a spot behind Gavin's head as he remembered New Jersey and his move here. "Didn't really have a lot of friends in high school but I made a bunch when I got to college."

"I came to the States when I was fourteen; dad got a job here and so we had to move. We still try to go back to England once a year to visit my grandparents and all that, but I love it here. I was the awkwardly shy British kid, so I didn't really have friends either, but I met my best friend Miles my senior year of high school and we just clicked; been close ever since," Gavin said, putting the bottle to his lips and taking a drink. "So, good looking fellow like you must have a girlfriend."

Michael blushed and looked away. "Well, uh, I don't... I like guys," he blurted out, not meeting Gavin's eyes. "Have since I was sixteen." 

Gavin's expression softened but his hopes lifted even more as he touched Michael's shoulder, squeezing it gently. Michael met his eyes. "So do I." 

"Why don't you two just bang already," a deep voice said from behind the two and both of them jumped, Gavin nearly spilling his drink in the process. A tall man with a muscular build and mischievous eyes laughed at them, eyeing Gavin. "So this is the guy that you talked to last night, Michael?" Michael nodded, the blush on his face a deeper red now. The guy scoffed. "'No one' my ass; you two obviously have a thing for each other."

"Ryan, shut up," Michael said tiredly. "I'm so sorry about him," he said to Gavin, who fumbled around nervously.

"Hey now, don't be hostile. I just came up here to tell Casanova here that he has to leave since we're about to close; although, you two could always exchange numbers and talk when you're not at work," Ryan suggested, grinning at the two before walking away.

"Wow, is it already time to close? Man, time sure does fly when you're having fun," Michael said sadly. Gavin looked around and grabbed a stray piece of paper and pen that was nearby and scribbled his number on it, handing it to Michael. He took it with a grin and tucked it in his pocket.

"Text me when you get the chance," Gavin said, pausing before pulling Michael into a quick hug. The two embraced for a few moments before breaking apart, Gavin exiting the store with one final wave.

\--

After that night, Gavin and Michael didn't go a day without texting each other or, eventually,  playing games on Xbox. They never saw one another on campus, as their classes were held at different times and Michael was almost always at work, so they rarely got to hang out much. But neither complained; as long as they could talk to each other through some form they would deal and just make plans to hang out when it was convenient for both of them. Besides, Gavin still made nightly trips to the store whenever Michael worked, always staying until right before closing time, which Michael always enjoyed.

That Friday after classes, Miles gave Gavin a ride home and ranted about the C he received on his paper which, as Gavin predicted, he didn't do until mere hours before it was due to be turned in. 

"I poured my heart and soul into that paper and he gave me a C, Gav. A fucking C," he raved angrily as he pulled into his driveway. The two got out and headed inside Miles's house, dropping their bags on his couch in the living room. 

"To be fair, you  _did_ wait until like three hours before to actually start on it," Gavin defended, pulling a bottle of water from the fridge. 

"Whatever, I still deserved at least a B," Miles said dismissively. "Anyway, so I'm throwing a small party tonight. You're coming right?" Gavin nodded over his drink. 

"Absolutely; I wouldn't miss it. Although, I probably won't be by until after eleven, I've got..." he paused. "...this thing I gotta do."

"Is this the same 'thing' you've done for the past week?" asked Miles, wiggling his eyebrows. "Who is he?"

"What?" he sputtered. "No-no one, Miles. Don't worry about it."

Miles held up his hands in surrender. "Alright, I won't pry. Barbara told me that she thinks she knows someone that would be perfect for you, Gav, so she's gonna bring him around tonight, so you  _have_ to be here. That's an order."

Gavin rolled his eyes and made his way back into the living room. Since he had met Barbara three years earlier, she had tried setting him up with at least fifteen different guys, all of which ended either miserably or awkwardly, as he had absolutely nothing in common with any of them. All they wanted to do was make-out and more, and Gavin really wanted a relationship, not just a fuck buddy. So he let each one of them down as gently as he could and that was that, though Barbara never stopped trying. 

"It's just going to end like all of the others, Miles. I wish she would stop trying," he grumbled, laying down on the sofa. 

"She has a good feeling about this one," he called from the kitchen. 

"She says that about all of them," he yelled back.  _Besides, I think I've found the one I want to be with. I don't need any other guy; Michael is the one for me._

As though he knew Gavin was thinking of him, Gavin's phone chimed with a text from Michael.

> **Michael Jones:** Hey Gavin, I forgot to tell you that I won't be at work tonight; I took off so I could go to my friend's friend's party. *rolls eyes* It's gonna be super lame; she's trying to set me up with someone and even though I told her that I didn't want to, she demanded that I come. So, instead of making her turn against me, I agreed to go.
> 
> **Gavin Free:** Oh trust me, I know how that is; I've got a friend who sounds exactly like that. But aww, okay, I guess I'll see you tomorrow night then?
> 
> **Michael Jones:** I took off tomorrow too because I have this gut feeling they're gonna force beer down my throat lol but we can hang out tomorrow if you're not busy? Maybe go see a movie?
> 
> **Gavin Free:** That sounds top Michael, I would love to.
> 
> **Michael Jones:** So, it's a date?
> 
> **Gavin Free:** Absolutely. <3
> 
> **Michael Jones:** See you tomorrow, then. <3

Gavin's heart caught in his throat and he put a pillow to his face and gushed, trying and failing to repress the squeals escaping his mouth. They were going on a date; an actual first date. Gavin's mind started to race a million miles an hour as he attempted to mentally decide what he was going to wear and if he was going to try and kiss him on the first date or if he should hold off and wait, if he should hold his hand during the movie...

"What the hell are you so happy for?" asked Miles, and Gavin removed the pillow only to see his face inches from him, an amused look on his face. 

"Oh, nothing," Gavin responded, trying to make a straight face but faltering. 

"Whatever man, hey, we need to go to the liquor store to get the beer and stuff for tonight," Miles said, grabbing his keys. Gavin stood up and followed him out the door, already wanting this day to be over with so he and Michael could go out tomorrow. 

\--

That night, the party was in full swing. Gavin knew most of the people that showed up, but there were a few people there that he was not familiar with. All the same, Gavin was enjoying himself. He was on his second beer, sipping slowly because he knew how he could go from stone cold sober to running naked down the street screaming "GOD SAVE THE QUEEN!" in as few as five cups of beer. His friend Kdin came up behind him and slapped a hand to his back, smiling at him.

"Great party huh?" he asked over the moderately loud music in the background. He heard cheering from the kitchen where Miles and a few others were playing beer pong. Gavin nodded and took another sip of beer, looking around in case Barbara came out of nowhere. He checked his phone periodically for texts from Michael, though he received none. He sighed, thinking he must be busy at that party he was forced to go to. He really hoped that Michael didn't meet someone else more interesting than Gavin and just stop talking to him altogether. That would completely devastate him. 

"Looking for me?" asked Barbara, appearing out of nowhere. Gavin jumped and sloshed his beer around, narrowing his eyes at her.

"Do you have to make me spill my drink at every party we attend?" he asked her as she just grinned at him. 

"Absolutely; it's tradition! Now, Gavin," she said, leading him to the front room. "I have someone I want you to meet, and I think I've got the right one this time for you. He's sweet, charming, good looking-"

"Michael?" asked Gavin, shocked to see him standing in Miles's front room, looking as though he would rather be anywhere but there. His eyebrows shot into his hair line when Gavin came into view and his jaw dropped open.

"No fucking way; you're the guy Barbara is trying to set me up with?" An incredulous laugh escaped from his mouth as he grinned at Gavin's surprised expression. 

"Wait," Barbara said, looking in between the two men. "You two know each other?"

They nodded, unable to take their eyes off of each other. Michael was dressed in a nice button down shirt a jeans, a beanie resting comfortably over the curls Gavin had gotten to memorize so well and Gavin had to admit that he looked really cute. "Well, I'll be damned. See, Gavin, my plan is going to work this time."

"Yeah, sixteenth time's the charm," Gavin mentioned dryly, looking at Barb's smug expression to see it slowly wipe from her face. 

She scoffed, obviously offended, and turned on her heel to go to the kitchen, leaving Michael and Gavin standing near one another with goofy grins on their faces. 

"So..." Michael said shyly, moving closer to Gavin.

"You still think this party is lame?" asked Gavin, taking Michael's hand in his and squeezing. 

"Nah," Michael said, squeezing his back. "Not anymore."

"Good," Gavin smiled, pulling at his arm. "There's some people I want you to meet."

"And how exactly are you going to introduce me? 'This is Michael, I met him at the grocery store he works at the night my mom had a craving for Oreos and we bonded over our mom's pregnancy craving stories'?" laughed Michael somewhat nervously. 

Gavin pondered for a moment before tugging him farther into the house and towards Miles who seemed to be near the point where he would remember absolutely nothing of that night. "Absolutely."


End file.
